The latest Australian Multi-Screen Report (Q1 2014) shows that while Australians’ screen habits are evolving, particularly among younger people, all major age groups spend the majority of their viewing time watching broadcast TV on in-home sets.

In most cases, Australians are using new technologies to add to or complement their viewing of ‘traditional’ TV. The use of laptops, tablets and mobile phones for watching video is increasing but is not the primary activity undertaken on these connected devices.

Nielsen’s Senior Vice President, Cross Platform Audience Measurement, Erica Boyd said: “We are all consuming more content now than ever before: more TV, more video, more audio and more text. Video may not be a primary activity conducted on mobile screens today, however, these additional media devices present large opportunities for programmers and advertisers. Through multi-screen strategies they can better understand engagement levels of TV viewers across media touch points."

“Broadcasters and brands need to work together to engage eye balls with compelling content that keeps viewers attached to the main screen when it matters. Opportunities exist for those who develop smart cross-platform strategies and executions that use the second and third screens to enhance and complement the main screen. This will ultimately extend advertising reach and resonance and engagement across multi-screening audiences,” said Boyd.

Evolving Viewing Patterns by Age Group

Kids: Under 13s are more likely than the population as a whole to use their TV sets for Other Uses (such as gaming, online activities on the TV, and Playback beyond the 7-day Consolidated viewing window). Even so, kids spend two thirds of their TV screen time watching Live TV: on average 65:06 per month, up 3:29 since Q1 2013.

Teens: People 16-17 (along with 25-34s) have the greatest tendency of all online Australians to multi-task: 89 per cent of online 16-17 year-olds report ever doing so (74 per cent across the total online population); 82 per cent of teens claim to multi-task at least monthly.

18-24s: This group spend the most time watching TV and other video on connected devices – 24:07 per month across PC/laptops, plus their claimed viewing on tablets and mobiles, compared to 45:14 watching TV on conventional sets.

25-34s: Online Australians aged 25-34 (along with teens) are the age group most likely to multi-task: 89 per cent report ever doing so (74 per cent across online Australians 16+.)

35-49s: The top online activities among 35-49s are email and search (tablets and computers), and checking weather and directions (mobile phones).

50-64s: This group’s most common online activities are email and search (tablets and computers), and checking weather and directions (mobile phones). Across devices, online video viewing is well down the list of their most common self-reported activities.

65+: People over 65 are the heaviest TV viewers, spending 150:36 each month watching broadcast TV in Q1 2014 (+11 minutes year-on-year). Their Other Screen Usage is most pronounced in the afternoons and evening peak.

OzTAM CEO Doug Peiffer said: “The latest Multi-Screen Report provides an opportunity to reconsider some stereotypes about Australians’ TV habits. For example, while people 50+ watch the most TV the drop off in younger audiences is often over-stated, and kids and 18-24s have actually increased their TV viewing on TV sets year-on-year. Though 18-24s are the heaviest viewers of video on connected devices, two-thirds of their viewing is still to broadcast TV. And the time over-50s spend watching online video each month on computers, tablets and mobiles shows Australians of all age groups are embracing the additional viewing opportunities new screens provide.”

Multi-Screen Report Q1 2014 – Summary of Key Findings:

Australians watch on average 93 hours and 16 minutes (93:16) of broadcast TV on traditional television sets per month - up 37 minutes per month year-on-year.

92.2% of all broadcast TV viewing is Live, with Playback of broadcast content that viewers record and watch within seven days accounting for 7.8% (7:15 per month).

99% of homes have converted to digital terrestrial television (DTT), with 93% having converted every working set in the home.

69% of Australians aged 16+ own a smartphone (61% in Q1 2013) and self-report an average 1:56 per month viewing any video on these devices (1:20 a year earlier).

12.323 million Australians watch some video (both television broadcast and non-broadcast content) on the Internet each month: an average of 7:48 per month. Such viewing is highest among people aged 18-24 (16:28) .

89% of all video viewing – across all screens, and including broadcast and non-broadcast video – is on the traditional TV set: 93:16 per month on the TV set (89%); 7:48 per month online via PCs/laptops (7.4%); 1:56 per month on smartphones (1.8%); 1:47 per month on tablets (1.7%)

About The Australian Multi-Screen ReportThe Australian Multi-Screen Report, released quarterly, is the first and only national research into trends in video viewing in Australian homes across television, computers and mobile devices. It combines data from the three best available research sources: the OzTAM and Regional TAM television ratings panels and Nielsen’s national NetView panel, Consumer & Media View database and Australian Connected Consumers Report.